Clean - Day 18

 

Today is Day 18 of my 21 day Clean detox program.
I am feeling so wonderful on it that I plan to continue
for another 3 weeks :-)
I find no reason to stop eating and nourishing myself
in a way that is doing me so much good!!

I sleep better, I have more energy, I feel stable and calm,
no highs or lows and my body is healing, slowly but more
and more.....with each passing day that brings me something
new to rejoice about.....

Liquid breakfast and dinner - green juices, green smoothies
or green soups - and a healthy balanced lunch which totally
satisfies me.....
I exepriment every day, making Clean meals and I'm enjoying
the whole process of discovering how to make Clean foods
with Clean ingredients tasty and delicious.
I am deeply satisfied and have intense pleasure with the foods
I am eating for lunch and the liquids I am having for breakfast
and dinner - If this is detox, well, I could continue forever!!! :-)
Not only is Clean food yummy but it is totally healthy and
brings goodness to your body and soul......

And the best part is that I can continue eating Indian meals,
adapted of course to Clean ingredients.
I need something Indian every other day, and I love being on
a detox that allows me to eat the food I've grown up with :-)

Here are some pictures of what I've been eating
for lunch these last few days - Enjoy :-)

Gluten free Vegan Soda bread, with avocado and salmon spread,

and cucumbers from our garden - a delicious open sandwich

for my lunch yesterday, with a side of mixed greens salad :-)

A slice of Socca - a traditional South East French street food,

also called Farinata in Italy.

Made from chickpea flour, oilive oil, herbs and spices, 

red onions and garnished with zucchini from our garden,

served with a mixed greens salad.
There is another version that we eat in India called
Besan ka cheela or puda and it is delicious too!!!

Salmon in green coconut masala, with brown rice, broccoli

and steamed green beans.

Green lentil Falafel made nutrient dense with flax seeds and 

sesame seeds, served on a Romaine lettuce wrap,

with avocado and sprouts, topped with a yummy sauce.

Fish curry with tamarind and coconut milk,
served with brown rice and garlic cumin spinach

Clean - Day 5

If I could express the experience of being on Clean program
up until now in just one word - it would be Stable.

In the last few days, I have been feeling - calm, stable and centered.

No highs or lows, no intense detox to struggle with, 

no bumpy waves to ride!

It is a very different ball game from Juice Feasting.
One that I'm beginning to really like and enjoy very much.
Early days yet, for sure......but there is a quiet confidence and
a subtle certitude filling me every day.....I am healing.
Aand slow and steady wins the race.

There is a kind of liberation, a feeling of freedom - in following a
plan that is not my own, sticking to a protocol and structure build
by someone else, someone who knows.....

This is what I've had the last 5 days:


Day 1:

Green Smoothie - mango, avocado, blueberries, coconut water, ginger, hemp protein, ground flax seeds, fresh kale and spinach from my garden, stevia and ice
Salmon with steamed Broccoli and Asparagus - sprinkled with hemp seeds, Udo's oil and Himalayan pink salt
Coconut water and handful of Cherries - for a snack
Green Juice - cucumber, celery, carrot, romaine lettuce


Day 2:

Green Juice - Cucumber, celery, pear, mint, lemon

Green Salad - Avocado, cucumber, broccoli sprouts, mixed salad greens from the garden, walnuts

2 Rice crackers + Hummus - as a snack

Green Smoothie - Pineapple, blueberries, kale, spinach, ground flax seeds, ginger

Day 3:

Green Juice - cucumber, celery, carrots, romaine lettuce, lemon

Indian vegetable/chickpea Curry + 3 tbs Brown Rice - zucchini, mint, 

coriander, green beans chickpeas, tamarind, spices and coconut milk

Blueberries - as a snack

Green Smoothie - Avocado, cucumber, spinach, stevia, ginger, lemon, 

hemp protein

Day 4:

Green Juice - cucumber, celery, apple, kale, ginger, lemon

handful of Cherries - as a snack

Salad - avocado, cucumber, swiss chard, spinach, walnuts, smoked trout

2 Rice crackers + Hummus - as a snack

Coconut Water + Blueberries - as a snack

Almond Milk and Mango Smoothie - with two dates and ginger

  
Day 5:

Green Juice - cucumber, celery, spinach, apple, ginger, lemon
Salmon in Green masala + Zucchini- Indian style salmon, with mint
/coriander/coconut/spices + zucchini.
Blueberries + Coconut water - as a snack
1 glass Watermelon shake - with basil, sea salt, ginger and ice
Raw soup - zucchini, avocado, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, coriander,
garam masala, olive oil


The protocol is liquid breakfast and dinner, one solid meal at lunch
and snacks in between if you are really hungry.
There has to be a 12 hour window between the liquid dinner and the
liquid breakfast the next day. This allows the body to rest and then
detox, cleanse and heal. I usually leave 15 hours between dinner and
breakfast, after all I do have a lot to heal from :-)

There is a list of what you can eat and what you can't. What is called
the "Elimination Diet" as there is a long list of foods you are leaving
out of your plate.
I did 5 days on Elimination Diet, eating one liquid breakfast and two
solid meals before going on the Clean program. This prepared me
very well and there are hardly any cravings, nor hunger pangs now....

You have to read the book "Clean" to understand and follow the plan,
there are supplements to take every day too.


Clean has been created by Dr Alejandro Junger - an amazing person.
I loved his book and everything he explained made absolute sense
and it felt like everything I have learnt and know has been put
together in the right place leading to right action for me :-)
The best place to learn more about this is Clean community site
with a wonderful group of members, who encourage, inspire,
support and share graciously.....

I feel good. I feel in the right place for me right now.
I feel grateful and happy :-)

Love to you all xoxox

Clean

Time to begin healing this new complex sounding neurological
immune dysfunction disease I have been diagnosed with.....

As I had mentioned in one of my earlier posts -I do not believe
in labels for chronic diseases as all diseases have one source -
Toxicity/Acidity.

I have wondered, questioned, and on occasion even lamented,
that despite eating fairly healthy, doing regular cleanses etc,
I still suffer from health challenges and issues!!

"All suffering stems from a resistance to What is."

I sincerely believe this and try to practice Active Acceptance
in my life. The last few weeks have been a revelation and I have
finally come to an Acceptance of my health challenges and the
fact that they are still with me. It holds meaning for me now.

And I have come back to a place where I am feeling at peace
with my body and its need again for healing and recovery.

It is not possible for me to do an intense Cleanse anymore,
those days  of long Juice Fasts are over! And as I wrote in my earlier
post, I like to eat a 70/30 to 80/20 raw alkaline diet as this is what
suits me. I do like my cooked food and I enjoy fish at times too......
No labels of any kind here either :-)

I bought a book called Clean by Dr Alexander Junger and it really 

resonated for me on all levels. 

I will be starting the Clean program from tomorrow. I will be
doing the program from the book and I'll write more about this
in the following posts.
I have joined their support community and to my happy surprise
I found an old blogging friend from my Juice feasting days, Jenny
who is now working as a Wellness coach with the Clean team!!!
How wonderful is that?? :-)))))

4 days on the elimination diet and then 21 days on the Clean plan.

I'll be blogging about it here, maybe not everyday,
but as often as I can.....

It makes a change to follow a program from someone else,
instead of doing my own thing! 

It will help me be consistent with the food, supplements and
activities.....

I am quite excited and look forward to being CLEAN and
healthy soon.....

And I feel grateful for these health challenges, with all the pain
and suffering they have entailed, all the difficulties and tough nights
they have put me through - I am deeply grateful for it all.......

To continue learning, discovering, healing, transforming.....
being more and more integral, authentic and bliss-filled......this is
what my health challenges have brought for me in their arms.....
a gift of grace......

I thank you my friends with all my being, for all the support and
love you continue to shower on me.....all along this healing
transforming journey......

Namaskar with a deep bow, and onwards to Clean from tomorrow :-)

Growing Food in our Patio

There is nothing as satisfying and empowering
as growing your own food.....

Day by day, to watch the plants changing, transforming,
new shapes, new flowering, new offerings......

A small patio, a couple of corners - green spaces emerge :-)

Patio corner

Marigolds and Dill

Salads and chives

Herbs - spring onion, horseradish, mint, oregano etc

Strawberry bush

Zucchini/courgette Flower

Onion Flower

Swiss chard

Young baby Spinach

Lambs Lettuce - mache

Hanging Tomato plant

Mixed Salad

Grace and Grit

 

Have you ever felt that you are moving around in circles,
never ending always turning circles?

My life for the last three years has often felt like that.....

And yet, I have continued moving and turning because
I have always believed in two things:

1) I am a circle with no periphery and the center everywhere.

2) It is not a circle turning...it is a spiral revolving....
and I am never at the same point horizontally,
but on a point that even  though feels the same, is not.....
It is on another level of the spiral!

The last three weeks have been a total nightmare......

I am undergoing tests, but my Doctor believes I have a chronic
neurological and immune dysfunction disease,
for which there is no cure, no proven treatment......
I won't write the fancy label here.....
I refuse to believe in it anyway!

Sustaining joy, acceptance and gratitude in the face of
such physical suffering - takes a lot of grace and grit.......


grace and grit......

to not give up,
to continue believing,
to continue having faith,
to feel calm inside,
to go beyond the fears,
to step out of crazy,
to move out of scary,
to hold on to hope,
to begin once more,
to ride the waves,
of fatigue and pains,
to feel the divine,
and continue to shine......

I have begun many chapters on this blog,
again and again fasting and feasting,
healing and transforming.....
and yet, the journey continues,
and yet, the healing will take place......again......

I began an ebook, it is half finished.....
I began a course in nutrition, it is half done too....
I don't know when I will be able to finish it all.....
I don't know when I will be able to live a normal
life either.....
I do know that I will.....it is enough for now.....
for now, it is enough to accept, to flow......

It seems like physical suffering, transforming
through the body - is my karma for this lifetime.....
What is the point of lamenting, feeling sorry for myself,
or moaning, grumbling and giving up?


I have these sufferings,
I am not these sufferings.....

I might have this disease, but this disease is definitely
not going to have me :-)

Wonder Wander

the days gone by
have been the calm
before a storm
waiting to transform...
now there is a buzz
from head to toe
a pull to wander
and begin once more....
a part of me aches
for stability and peace
another for adventure
a fresh new lease....
i live a period
a chapter a phase
then let go and move
to another stage.....
i taste and explore
every wave and shore
i reach out and touch
what i haven't touched before........

Green Juice/Smoothie, Brownie and New World....

The last ten days since I finished my liquid feast
have been very interesting, I have not always managed
to remain 80% alkaline and raw, but I've been close.

I begin every morning with a Green Juice or a Green smoothie,
and I have noticed that they have a different impact on the day
that follows.....
Green Juice gives stability, a kind of calmness and clarity.
Strangely, even though it has no fiber and is light in density,
it gives a more solid and tangible effect than a Green Smoothie.
The Smoothie is very good if I want to go out and have a busy day,
it stimulates and gives a kind of buzz. I think it comes from the
fruit in the Smoothie, fructose it is but definitely a form of sugar.
The day I want to write or study or need mental clarity for talks,
discussions or to coach/counsel clients or friends, I am better off
with lots of Green Juice.
Another thing I have noticed is the Juice takes away all kinds of
cravings or emotional hunger. I have no need to snack or eat anything
for quite a long time after I've had my liter of Juice, whereas with
even two glasses of Green Smoothie, I get hungrier more quickly!

Green Juice:

The base is always cucumber, celery, ginger and lemon/lime.
To this I add my greens - kale/spinach or romaine.
Usually I use a couple of carrots to lightly sweeten the juice,
if I have run out of carrots I use half a pear or half an apple,
never more because I don;t like the juice to taste sweet.....
Today I bought some oranges, because I want to have
carrot, celery, orange and ginger juice, not in the morning
as that is when I need a huge dose of greens, but as a snack
sometime in the late afternoon.....

Green Smoothie:

The base is always kale or spinach or romaine, sometimes
if I have none of these, I just add whatever green salad
I have in my fridge and chilled water.
I usually use half a banana and a big handful of blueberries
or strawberries, a tablespoon of hemp seeds, a pinch
of sea salt and some ice cubes....I like the smoothie to be
really cold, otherwise I don't enjoy it as much!!


I have a box of blueberries every day, I can't seem
to get enough of these, I can eat them all day long!!!

And I love a good yummy salad with lots of greens
and avocados and tomatoes and peppers and ....and.....
so much variety, so many vegetables to choose from,
it is never boring :-))))
And the dressings can be delish too!!!

I eat small helpings of food - I feel full
very quickly. My body does not need a lot of food,
what it needs and calls out for is high nutrient density foods!

I usually eat one small meal cooked - a chunky vegetable soup
made in the pressure cooker with spices and a little coconut milk,
or some steamed broccoli with a few pieces of steamed sweet
potato,
or quinoa / brown rice / buckwheat or millet or amaranth flatbread
with steamed vegetables or sometimes a salad with a bean burger.

I've had a small piece of steamed fish once with Trevor along with
steamed broccoli and it was okay, I think I can eat fish once a week,
with no problems at all.....
But I am not attracted at all to any dairy products or eggs etc.....

In fact, tonight we had some guests and I made a chocolate
brownie with honey, ground almonds and dessicated coconut,
no flours at all but with black beans, 2 eggs and some olive oil....
It was very light and melt in your mouth, I was tempted and had
a portion of it.....it felt good for the first few bites and then I felt
quite sick!!! Instant headache and nausea, my whole body
rejected it and I just kept saying, not this, not again, don't want,
don't want, and felt an intense yearning for greens and more greens......
I've had two liters of water with sodium bicarbonate and
green powder to alkalize.......
The next time, I want to eat something sweet and chocolatey,
I think I'll stick to raw avocado chocolate mousse!!!

I am laughing and grinning as I write this - just very interesting
to observe how the body speaks when you listen and how old neural
pathways light up at times, but when you take a walk down that road,
it is simply not the same thing anymore!

The NEW WORLD is here to stay this time around, YESSSS :-))))